This invention relates to the field of video programs. More particularly, the present invention provides a system and method for video program viewers to receive supplemental information, via a computer data communication network, that is synchronized to the action and events of the video program.
Many broadcast television and video cassette programs (e.g., rented movies) are regularly watched by large audiences. Considering the growing number of TV sets and video cassette recorders (VCR) in homes and the amount of time the average person spends watching TV, the size of the audience is expected to increase over time. Correspondingly, programs need to change and evolve to suit the ever-more diverse tastes and interests of this expanding audience.
Advertisers, broadcasters and video program producers are constantly looking for ways to enhance the viewing experience of their programs. Moreover, they are looking for ways to differentiate and promote their programs over those of their competitors. For example, television networks, cable companies and independent program providers offer a myriad of program categories to capture the interest of viewers. These program categories include, for example, game shows, talk shows, situation comedies, sporting events, soap operas, movies and educational programs. The ultimate goal is to provide interesting programming, in order to capture a large segment of the viewing audience.
In recent years, the Internet has received a great deal of attention. The Internet is a vast and expanding network of computers and other devices linked together by various media, enabling all the computers to exchange and share data. The Internet provides an enormous amount of information about a myriad of corporations, products and services, as well as educational, research and entertainment information. It is estimated that more than 30 million people worldwide now use the Internet with 100 million predicted to be on the "net" within a few years.
One way to establish a presence on the Internet is by placing a web site on a host operating a web server within a given domain name (e.g., "USPTO.gov"). A web site consists of one or more web pages, which are basically computer data files. A web page is identified by a unique Internet address commonly referred to as a Uniform Resource Locator ("URL"). When the web server receives an inquiry from the Internet, it returns the web page data to the computer making the inquiry. The web page may comprise multiple pages of information including messages, hyperlinks (i.e., automatic links that permit jumps from one web page to another), audio and graphical information, and combinations thereof.
In this regard, some advertisers and producers of television programs, movies and video programs have created web sites to promote and to provide additional information concerning their respective programs or projects. For example, an Internet user can access a web site related to his favorite TV show (e.g., "http://www.spe.sony.com/pictures/tv/seinfeld.htm") to get an episode schedule, get more information about the TV show's characters and actors, and find out about up-coming special events. Web sites have also been created which allow Internet users to gather additional information about products or services that are advertised in television commercials.
Television advertisers having associated web sites often display the Internet address, or URL of an associated web site during television advertisements. With the URL, a prospective customer can access the advertiser's web site to receive additional information about the advertiser, the advertised product and/or related products.
As these web sites make clear, advertisers, producers and developers of video programs have the potential to provide the viewer with far more information than can be practically accommodated by conventional television or video cassette programs. For example, the typical TV program format makes it difficult to provide intricate details concerning the plot or characters within the program, because the story-line must flow in a relatively quick and fluid manner. Unlike a novel, where an author can devote extensive time to a given character, item, or event, the dialogue in TV programs must flow in a real-time manner. In many situations, this means that the writers must provide only a brief summary of a character, item or event to fit within the limitations of a television program and keep the action flowing smoothly.
In contrast to broadcast television or video cassette programs in which playing time is premium, a web site providing supplemental information is not so constrained. In this regard, a system known as HyperTV has been disclosed which enables television viewers to view web pages that are launched at the time of a broadcast television program. This system allows a viewer to select additional information related to a television program at the time of its original broadcast.
Another system, Intercast, has been developed which integrates content of a web page with a broadcast TV signal using the vertical blanking interval ("VBI") of the television signal. This system utilizes an undisplayed portion of the received signal to transmit data to a television receiver. Like HyperTV, this system enables a viewer to view the content of a web site related to the particular program at the time of the broadcast.
Although these systems provide additional content to a viewer of a broadcast television program, they have significant shortcomings. Presently, these systems provide additional information related to the television program, such as live chat lines, on-demand audio and video clips, and online shopping, but these systems fail to provide supplemental information synchronized with the action and events occurring within a particular video program.
In addition, the Intercast system requires sophisticated video decoding circuitry to extract transmitted data from the VBI. The Intercast system further requires circuitry to allow the user to interface with the television receiver and send viewer requests upstream to a service provider.
Further, both Intercast and HyperTV require the viewer to view the television program at the time of the original broadcast to receive synchronized information. A viewer wishing to time-shift his viewing of a television program, for example, using a VCR, cannot receive synchronized additional information from any of the prior art systems.
The failure of these system to provide synchronized supplemental information is a major disadvantage. To more fully enhance the viewer's experience, the supplemental information discussed above must be provided at the proper times to correspond with the action and events of the video program.
A wealth of non-broadcast material (or non-video-taped material) could be created and used to supplement conventional video programs. In the example discussed above, additional audio and visual tracks could be used to provide the supplemental information desired by the viewer. Although, this supplemental information must be synchronized to the action and events occurring in the video program so that the viewer can receive this information at the proper times.